


Scapegoat

by ErrantAdventure



Category: Star Wars Legends - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, One Sith, Post-Fate of the Jedi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-06
Updated: 2018-04-06
Packaged: 2019-04-19 09:54:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14234730
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErrantAdventure/pseuds/ErrantAdventure
Summary: A brief showdown between a Sith Lord and a young knight of the next generation of Jedi. They have no idea what's coming.





	Scapegoat

Senator Yuriish stood in the entryway to the many-times-rebuilt Senate Building, about to enter to engage, like always, in almost meaningless debate, squabble rather, with his fellow delegates. The Rotunda looked almost nothing like its original Old Republic incarnation, having since served three successive governments and weathered numerous arduous wars. 

Yuriish was well-dressed in velvoid robes and an opulent medallion of office, but his dignified adornments were severely contrasted with his flushed, flustered, frustrated demeanor. A Bith was speaking, attempting to placate the fuming human:

“Senator Yuriish, I pledge to you that Senator Aberro has the Alliance’s best interests at heart! Kotiro is a lawless world with poor, suffering people and vast untapped natural resources. Its inclusion in the Galactic Alliance would greatly benefit both the Kotirans currently under the Potentate and the Alliance itself!”

“I’ve heard all this before, Sha’seer,” Yuriish replied, still enraged. “But none of the potential benefits change the fact that this is only the start. What Aberro wants amounts to nothing more than thinly veiled imperialism! That make work in for Fel, but the Alliance cannot tolerate this!”

Yuriish’s body abruptly shot into the air and like a rag doll hurled across the six meters between Sha’seer and the nearest column. Yuriish slammed into the marble and his body sat pinned two meters from the ground, his mouth open in a scream silenced by his lungs’ lack of air.

“In fact, Senator,” a new, resonant voice said calmly, “I assure you that it can.”

In strode a humorless, hulking man with a goatee, dressed in simple, a deep red mantle. He held his hand out toward Yuriish, clearly the one exerting the effort keeping the senator against the wall.

Senator Sha’seer was aghast. “Senator Aberro! You’re…a Jedi?!”

Aberro smiled, just slightly—almost a sneer. “Think, dear colleague, in the general direction of antonyms.”

Sha’seer’s already large eyes widened in disbelief, and Yuriish found his voice.

“A Sith! I told you, you fools, we’re being led to ruin! He’s—”

Yuriish’s tirade cut off, replaced by a gurgle, as Aberro’s hand curled into a fist. Yuriish’s mouth continued to move, struggling to inhale.

Boots tapped on the duracrete, and a man in green and black came to a halt behind the newly exposed darksider. “Release him.”

Yuriish immediately dropped to the ground, gasping and clutching his throat. Aberro whirled around to face the newcomer. Sha’seer, astonished by the ease with which Aberro followed the man’s command, was confused.

“Jedi Horn, you’re with him?!”

“No, Senator, be calm,” Valin Horn responded. 

“The Jedi is simply testing the strength of my mind,” Aberro snarled.

Valin leveled his gaze at his counterpart. “This is your one chance, Aberro. Step down. Go home. Never think about galactic domination again and live out the rest of your days in peace and contemplation.”

“That sounds entirely too boring, Jedi. I’d go mad.”

“Madder.”

“Regardless, puny apprentice, I am just beginning. The Senate has appointed me chairman of the new Alliance Expansion Commission, and my position will only move upward from there. There are people in place in all major sectors’ governments who—”

“…will ensure that you retain your power and continue to gain more. We know. Your conspiracy has been exposed…and thwarted. This ends here.”

“Why did your masters send you to stop me, Jedi? You are weak, powerless. I can feel it.”

“It’s the Jedi way,” Valin said with a smirk. “False sense of security and all that.”

Aberro drew aside his blood red cloak, revealing a cylinder of polished obsidian.

“Don’t do it, Aberro,” Valin warned.

“You stand no chance, weakling. I am heir to Palpatine! I will rule this galaxy!”

“All of Palpatine’s potential heirs are dead, Sith. Vader, Lumiya, Carnor Jax…dead. You’re just a megalomaniac with an energy sword.”

Aberro’s lightsaber flew into his hand, and in a flash, it was ignited and headed for Valin’s neck. Equally quickly, but perfectly calmly, Valin drew his own lightsaber and, one-handed, brought it up to block, never taking his eyes from Aberro’s.

There was no blasterfire. Valin betrayed only the slightest confusion in his face, but Aberro caught it and smiled. “You’re not the only one who can thwart, Jedi dog. Your snipers proved quite weak-minded.”

And with that, the two Force-users were a flurry of motion and light, struggling for an opening, any opening. Those senators further into the Rotunda than the combatants huddled as far away across the chamber as possible, while those further out fled altogether. Their respective guards, largely ceremonial and certainly unable to do anything now, stood ineffectually toying with their weapons.

A red-bladed thrust at Valin’s face, expertly parried. A kick at Aberro’s chest, easily dodged. A wide swing at Valin’s thigh, barely deflected. A follow-up blast of telekinesis, withstood. For a long time the battle was even, but Aberro increased his telekinetic attacks, buffeting Valin along with every strike with his lightsaber. Valin’s defenses eroded, and after only a couple of minutes, the tip of Aberro’s lightsaber found Valin’s wrist, burning a small circular hole deep into his flesh. His weapon fell from his hand.

Valin backflipped away athletically, unable (like his father) to simply call the lightsaber to his hand, and not stupid enough to try to bend down and pick it up. Valin landed solidly and Aberro sneered at him, chuckling quietly as he raised his hand.

Lances of electricity shot forth, jolting across the few meters between them and slamming into Valin. Most, even most Jedi, would have been ravaged by Aberro’s lightning, reduced to a curled-up ball of agony on the ground. But Valin was ready for it; he knew how to deal with it, knew how to benefit from it. The surge of lightning stopped.

The entire room was silent and still while the two men stood staring.

Aberro’s eyes widened, and Valin shook his head slightly, almost sadly.

“You egotistical fool.”

Valin raised his hand slowly and calmly, and the bright blast of energy that poured from it was enough to bear Aberro’s body across the chamber and shatter it against the opposite wall.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Valin Horn keyed the pad and the door to his apartment slid silently open. Seha Dorvald Horn stood smiling—Force, she’s glowing, he thought—in the middle of the room. For most sentients, one’s wife waiting vigilantly in the living area when one was not expected home might seem odd, even a tad creepy, but most sentients’ wives are not Jedi. 

“Welcome home, Jedi hero!” she exclaimed.

Valin strode across the space between them and enveloped her, drawing up her smaller frame to kiss her vigorously. He lay his hand on the slight swell of her belly and couldn’t help but break into a boyish grin. 

“How’s she doing?” he asked. She was four and a half standard months along, carrying their first child. 

“Oh she’s great…she hasn’t even made me feel like poodoo today. And I can’t help but notice you smell burned, dear husband. I don’t think you were completely honest with me when you reported your success earlier.”

Valin’s smile shrunk considerably. “It wasn’t a completely effortless duel, no. Let’s just say one of my best sets of robes is…somewhat charred.”

Seha just rolled her eyes. Over the years, the two had come to trust one another implicitly, and if Valin said he was fine, she knew she could believe it. And so the two sat down in their apartment in the Jedi Temple as Valin told his beloved of his battle with the Sith.

Married Jedi were not required to live in the Temple, and Valin and Seha had a flat near the rebuilt Eastport that they had lovingly decorated and personalized during the first year and a half of their marriage. Upon announcement of Seha’s pregnancy, however, Valin’s father and leading Council member Corran had insisted that they move into the Temple, saying that “there’s no way in the nine hells that my daughter-in-law is going to be bearing my grandchild under any security short of the Jedi Order.”

And so Valin and Seha found themselves in a beautifully simple residence high in the Temple, facing the government district—a gorgeous view. Valin had initially balked at taking the large space, but Grand Master Skywalker himself had just smiled and told him that with the Council on Ossus and many of the Jedi Masters out in the galaxy, Valin was one of the chief Jedi on Coruscant, and it was only fitting that his new family take those quarters.

“So it’s over, right?” Seha asked. “Well, obviously the Order and the GA will do some follow-up investigation, but you at least believe it’s done?”

“Yeah, should be.” Valin slowly stretched out on the sofa, bringing his aching legs up and laying them across Seha’s lap. “Darth Aberro was definitely the core of the scheme—he’s the one everyone else was reporting to. There might be a couple more pockets of conspirators out there, but Dad told me the Wraiths were on the case and then grinned maniacally…which I’m taking as his being confident that we’ll be fine.”

Seha smiled, finally a bit more relaxed. “Good. Maybe we can finally spend some more time together. Ever since this leaked you’ve been so busy.”

“Force, I know. Ever since Leia felt that dark presence aboard that mysterious frigate out near Bimmiel we’ve been uncomfortable.”

When Jaina Solo, Zekk, and Jagged Fel had pursued Alema Rar to The Home in the MZX32905 system, Han and Leia Solo had arrived to assist them, and an unknown contact had appeared, shadowing the whole affair. Leia had felt a darkness then, and in the ensuing years—including the final battle against Darth Caedus—the Jedi registered faint but distinct Force signatures. While Caedus was still a threat, these others had been pushed to the back of the Order’s collective mind, but afterward, they’d begun to seek them out. 

“Maybe it’s just me, Valin, but it doesn’t seem to have been very well planned. Doesn’t that bother you?”

“Well…yeah I’ve given it some thought. So has the Council. And we’ll still be vigilant and keep our eyes open…but the general consensus is that we shouldn’t always assume the Sith are smarter than us just because Palpatine was.”

Seha was about to say something when the two of them heard a series of beeps from behind them. Valin turned and saw a green astromech droid—Whistler, one of his father’s oldest friends, and assigned to assist his daughter-in-law at the old Master’s insistence. Whistler tweetled on for a few more seconds, and Valin and Seha stared blankly. The two of them had nowhere near the experience with Whistler that Corran did, and they had no idea what he was saying. Whistler made a sound (A sigh? Valin thought. Droids can sigh?) and emitted a hologram, showing in text what he’d just said:

MASTER KORR WISHES TO ADDRESS THE TEMPLE’S RESIDENTS CONCERNING THE SITH CONSPIRACY. HE HAS PREPARED A REPORT ON THE FINAL ASSAULT ON THEIR LEADER AND REQUESTS THAT EVERYONE ATTEND IF POSSIBLE.

“Thanks, Whistler. We’ll be there soon.” Valin shifted, starting to get up, but Seha grabbed his legs and moved them back to the couch.

“No, dear. You stay here. I’ll go for both of us. If there’s anything you don’t already know—which I doubt—I’ll fill you in later.”

“But…I’m fine. And you need rest as much as I do.”

“False. The baby is calm, I’ve felt fine all day, and I’m a Jedi too…meaning I can keep my body in check. You, on the other hand, are exhausted.” She lightly grazed his wrist. “And you could use a healing trance. We don’t want to be without one of our star Jedi for any longer than we have to.”

Despite himself, Valin smiled as Seha left the room. He’d been lucky to find her. More appropriately, he’d been lucky they were thrust together. During the preparations for their mission with Kyle Katarn to capture Jacen, they’d grown close, and over the course of that harrowing mission they’d developed a tight bond. It only grew the rest of the war, and during the final, epic battle against Caedus and his forces, Valin had saved Seha’s life. And then, not twenty minutes later, she’d returned the favor. Their friendship was permanent from then on, and over the years, as she matured and the gap between their ages became less significant, it had grown beyond friendship. Yes, even someone as brutal and devastating as Jacen managed to do some good things, if only accidentally.

Valin settled his sore body into a meditative pose and closed his eyes. A slight smile remained on his lips as he settled into a trance, reaching deep into the Force.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Luke Skywalker stopped on his stroll to the Council chambers to look out the panoramic viewport that showed a gorgeous vista of Coruscant’s skyline. New skyscrapers galore, alongside those few old ones that had survived the Yuuzhan Vong, interspersed with plentiful vegetation, that landscape was one vastly different than the one Luke had known much of his life. But he wasn’t focused on the view. Instead, he was looking at his own reflection, smoothing his hair—so grey…when did that happen?—and robes, flexing his face and breathing deeply in a vain attempt to reduce his wrinkles and try to look less tired. Taking one last deep, Force-infused breath, Luke traversed the last few dozen meters to the door of the Council chambers. Entering, he found the rest of the Council already assembled, chatting amiably. Corran and Kyp were having a jovial debate over the Alliance’s newest frontline starfighter, another Incom production, while Cilghal regaled Kyle Katarn and Tionne about her latest visit to Zenoma Sekot and the world’s Yuuzhan Vong population. 

They quickly grew quiet as he entered, turning to face him and settling into their seats around the table. Luke found his and settled into it, involuntarily grunting as his body complained about the chair. He leaned forward on his elbows and scanned the room. 

“Gentlebeings,” he announced, “it’s officially over. The last of the cells has been mopped up, and this situation, for once, was actually handled in a quick, decisive, and effective matter. Wraith Squadron just reported in with its last round of captives.”

Horn laughed and jabbed a finger. “I told you! They’re as good as always.”

The rest of the council chuckled, and Luke shared in a smile. But he just wasn’t feeling it.

The council was made up of the best Jedi the Order had to offer, though, and his mood did not go unnoticed. Kirana Ti was the first to speak: “Master Skywalker, surely you did not convene this meeting simply to inform us of our success against this latest threat. You could have simply commed us had that been the case. And there do not seem to be any follow-up endeavors necessary on our parts. What, then, is the purpose of this meeting?”

With all eyes on him again, Luke let out a sigh. He met the gaze of each individual council member before speaking.

“I want to go home,” he declared unceremoniously. “Not like I normally do, to my chambers three floors from here, only to be woken up in the morning with the latest in galactic affairs. Not like I have for decades, spending half my time in a cockpit chasing after the latest idiot who’s decided it’d be fun to rule the galaxy. I want to actually go home. I want to help raise my adopted niece. I want to go on an actual vacation with my son. I want to fish. I would absolutely love to sit around and talk about sports with Wedge and Tycho. I want to be done with this.”

He was met with silence at first. But as the gathered Masters processed what he’d just said, the room became a flurry of chatter.

“So where do you plan to go?”

“Are you leaving the Order?”

“Who’ll be in charge?”

“You’re not…dying, are you?”

With a motion of his hand and a tiny bit of pressure in the Force, Luke quickly brought the room back to quiet. The council members were all practically leaning forward in anticipation. 

“I’m retiring. I know of no precedent for this; as far as I know, Jedi serve until death. And I am not abandoning you. As always, you will be able to contact me…if necessary, or for purely social reasons. But…I think it’s time for, well, a hermitage.”

The reaction was more mixed this time. Some of them reacted incredulously, others sympathetically, and others began firing off practical questions. Kyp’s voice rose above the others’.

“So where does the Order’s leadership fall now, Luke? Even when you weren’t officially the Grand Master, you were unquestionably our leader. How do we compensate for your loss?”

Luke sighed again. “The Order doesn’t have to have a single leader, Kyp. The Council is made up of beings with vast experience, and decades of wisdom. Your collective leadership ought to be sufficient. The Order does not need a Grand Master to survive. Tionne…in your research of the holocrons, how many Grand Masters have you come across?”

The silver-haired Rindaoan shrugged. “I don’t know, really…I’d say that over the past five thousand years or so, there’s been a Grand Master less than twenty percent of the time.”

Luke nodded. “It’s not an integral part of the system, nor does it need to be. I trust all of you to lead the Order where it ought to go. With the galaxy finally stable, and this last vestige of the Sith stamped out, maybe there will be peace. And with the government finally trusting us again, maybe we can focus internally for a while. Build the Order. Return to its philosophical roots. Put away your lightsabers for a while.”

Corran shook his head. “You don’t really think we’ve eradicated the Sith, do you, Luke?”

Luke finally did chuckle. “No, of course not. They always come back. But that aura we’ve been feeling…it’s finally gone. We’ve set them back, maybe to the point that there is no one in the galaxy currently practicing Sith arts. Hundreds of years from now, someone will stumble across some artifact, and this will start again, but for now, it is time to rest.”

Luke rose, and the rest of the Council followed suit. “From this moment forward, the Order is yours. Guide it with the Force, and be guided by the Force. Each of you has a unique contribution to bring to the table, and all of you have wisdom, should you allow yourselves to use it. I have every confidence in the future of the Jedi Order.”

As they filed out of the room, Corran and Kyp sauntered up and took positions on either side of Luke. “So where are you headed now, Luke?” Kyp asked mischievously.

“I’m going to plan a trip with my son.”

Corran glanced at Kyp, and grinned childishly. “Care for a quick joyride beforehand, boss?”

Luke laughed aloud, looking for a second much younger than he’d felt in a while.

“Sure, why the hell not.”

 

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

 

A hiss accompanied the mechanical buzz of the machine as the cryogenic freezing chamber slowly brought its enclosed occupant back down to normal temperatures. A black-clad, red-skinned being stood somberly beside, waiting patiently for the apparatus to complete its task. As it did, the being within blinked once, twice, three times, then looked around, multicolored eyes focusing menacingly on the bystander. The latter spoke in a bass voice.

“It worked, my lord.”

Still disoriented, the newly awakened human sat up slowly. “What worked?”

“The diversion, my lord. The clues we sowed were snatched up greedily by the puny Jedi.”

The multicolored eyes widened in recognition, and the human laughed, the sound booming through the cryogenics chamber. “Wonderful, Wyyrlok! Tell me, were they effective?”

“Quite so, Lord Krayt. Aberro is dead, executed by a Jedi Knight in the Senate Rotunda. Every single cell of Aberro’s insurrection has been weeded out. It is a good thing Aberro was so stupid…it would have been a shame to lose him otherwise.”

“Good. And he never suspected a thing?”

“At no point did he question us, milord. He genuinely thought up til the end that he was chosen to lead us to galactic domination. And the brilliant manner in which the Jedi dispatched him precluded any confession on his part. And, as ordered, he told nothing to his subordinates. All of them were under the impression he was alone in his leadership.”

Krayt laughed again. “And may I assume, then, that the Jedi are satisfied? They believe their earlier…sensations to have been linked back to Aberro?”

“You are wise as always, Lord Krayt. They have been lulled into tranquility by their spectacular successes. Our tracks are again covered.”

Krayt lay back down in his freezing tank, satisfied. Nodding to Wyyrlok, he closed his eyes. Krayt’s loyal right hand pressed a sequence of buttons, returning his master to a frozen state, and exited the room, already preparing to execute the next stage of the plan.


End file.
